Vessel for transporting liquid cargoes in bulk



L. V. SONE.

Patented Jan. 19', 1886.

(No Model.)-

VESSEL FOR TRANSPORTING LIQUID GARGOES IN BULK.

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LOUIS v. SONE, on NEW YORK, N. Y.

VESSEL FOR TRANSPORTING LIQUID CARGOES lN BULK.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 334,481, dated January19, 1886.

Application filed September 25, 1885. Serial No.178,146.

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that, I, LOUIS V. SoNE, a citizen of the United States,residing in the city, county, and State of New York, have inventedcertain new and useful Improvements in Vessels for Transporting LiquidOargoes in Bulk; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full,clear, and exact description of the invention, which will enable othersskilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

In Letters Patent No. 326,344, dated September 15, 1885, I described aseries of independent storage-tanks arranged within the hull of a vesseland combined with a pressu retank in such manner that by supplying thepressure-tank with liquid pumped from auxiliary tanks from time to time,as might be required, the main tanks could be kept entirely full and theliquid therein be kept under continuous pressure. By the means thereinset forth a cargo of liquid in bulk of almost any kind, from heavysluggish molasses to gaseous volatile-naphtha, can be handled entirelyfrom the deck of the vessel and its con dition be ascertained withreasonable certainty at such times and under such circumstances as wouldmake it unsafe, by reason of accumulationsof injurious gasesor vapor, todescend into the hold of the vessel to inspect or make the necessaryconnections to shift the cargo or any portion of it.

The present invention relates to improvements upon the construction andarrangement of tanks as described and shown in said Letters Patent No.326,344, whereby supplemental tanks are located above or upon a higherplane than the main storage-tanks, and are so connected therewith bypipes that they perform the combined offices or functions of theauxiliary tanks, the pressure-tanks, and the overfiow-tanks described insaid Letters Patent,

the arrangement and combination being such 'that the supplemental tanksoperate automatically to supply the required quantity of liquid forcontinuous pressure upon the liquid of the main tanks, and to give suchpressure and to receive the overflow from the main I tanks. I

(No model.)

The advantages of constructing and arrang- 5o ing main storage-tanks fortransporting liquids in bulk within the hull of a vessel so that theyare independent and separate from each other, and so that their surfacescan be readily inspected and repaired, as well as the importance ofkeeping such tanks full and under continuous pressure, were fully setforth in the specification of Letters Patent No. 326, 344, to whichreference is hereby made; and in carrying out the present invention Iprefer to construct and arrange the main tanks in sub stantially thesame manner as therein set forth-that is, the tanks are preferably ofthe same shape, are similarly arranged with relation to each other andthe Walls of the hull,

and are retained in position by the same or equivalent means. I do not,however, regard the special construction, relative arrangement,

and confinement of the main tanks in position as essential features ofmy present invention; but simply a preferred construction andarrangement which may be properly adopted under ordinary circumstances,and which for this reason I have shown in the accompanying drawings.

In the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification,Figure l is a crosssection through the line 00 x of Fig. 2 of ahull of avessel containing my invention, and Fig. 2 is a plan view of the same.

In the drawings, A A represent main storage-tanks of cylindrical shape,made of suitable material and strength for the purpose, preferably ofiron or steel, and arranged in the hull B of a sailing or steam vessel.

The arrangement shown in the drawings is of four tiers of tanks alongthe length of the hull, with twelve tanks in each tier. These tanks aresupported upon heavy cross-timbers G, secured to the sides of the hull,and are prevented from moving in afore-and-aft direction of the hull byabutting timbers D, secured in position in contact with the heads of thetanks, and in an athwart direction by the side timber, E, and by chocksF, all of which are more fully described in said Letters Patent N 0.326,344. Each main tank is provided with a man-hole, G, and a supply anddischarge pipe or fitting, H, provided with a valve, to which a hose orflexible pipe may be attached for filling and emptying the tanks.

c a representa series of supplemental tanks firmly fixed upon a deck ort-imbering, I, above the main tanks A A. I prefer that the number ofsupplemental tanks in each tier shall be equal to the number of the maintanks which are located beneath them in the same tier, so that, ifdesired, all the supplemental tanks and the main tanks can beconnectedin pairs. The tanks a a are preferably of the same length asthe tanks A A, and are located directly above them, so that their headsshall be in the same vertical planes, as shown in the fore half of thehull of Fig. 2, in which the tanks c a are represented in dotted lines,an equal number of main tanks (not shown) being located directly beneaththem. In the aft half of the hull, as seen in Fig. 2, the sup plcmentaltanks have been purposely omitted to show the main tanks in dottedlines. It is to be understood, however, that there is to be the samenumbcrof supplemental tanks in the aft as in the fore half of the hull,and that the preferred number of supplemental tanks throughout theentire hull is equal to the number of the main tanks.

The supplemental tanks a a may be of much smaller diameter than the maintanks and still have sufficient capacity to meet the requirements oftheir use. They should. however, be considerably stronger in proportionto their size than the main tanks, in order to withstand the swash andhammering of their contents which will result from the circumstanccthatthey will generally be only partly full of liquid. If made of the samethickness of material as the main tanks, and of only one-fourth orone-eighth the diameter. they will have sufficient capacity and strengthfor the purposes required.

I prefer that each one of the supplemental tanks should be connectedwith only one of the main tanks ofthe same tier or bank by means of apipe uniting the lower part of a supplemental tank with the upper partof a main tank. This connection is shown in the tanks at the left of thecentral line of Fig. 1, in which the desired connect-ions are made bythe pipesb b. On the right-hand side of said figure only two of thesupplemental tanks are shown as actually connected with the main tanks,each of these being connected with three main tanks by means of threepipes, also designated by the letter Z). The remaining four tanks, a a,of this series are unconnected, but they are provided withfittings,whereby pipe-connections of each with one or more of the maintanks can readily be made. The tanks 0 a are provided with gas-pipes 0,leading from the top thereof through the deck d and extending upward tosuch height that the discharge of gas or vapor will be without injury orannoyance to those on bo'ard the vessel. For convenience, thesegas-pipes or those of one or more tiers of tanks may enter a common pipeor manifold, c, which is provided with a discharge-cock, f, and with agas-discharge pipe, 9, which latter passes up through the roof h of thehouse which covers the manifold and the hatch. The supplemental tanksare provided with indicators 1', attached to the heads or ends thereof,and may consist simply of glass tubes, graduated if desired, inserted inproper fittings in the heads of the tanks, and properly protected frombreakage.

The operation of the combination of supplemental and main tanks,connected together and provided with gas-discharge pipes, as abovedescribed, is as follows: The main tanks A A are filled or nearly filledwith the liquid to be transported by pumping the same through theirrespective supply-pipes. the air and vapor during the filling risingthrough the pipes 6 into the tanks at and through the pipes 0 into theopen air. Liquid is then pumped into the tanks a a through their supply-pipes, and runs down the pipes b to fill any empty space in thetanks A A, after which the pipes b will be filled, and then the tanks aa are filled to a degree which will best answer the conditions oftransportation in any given case. Suppose the tanks a a on leaving portto be half-full of liquid, which, under average conditions, may beregarded as most desirable, the main tanks and eonnecting-pipes b ofcourse being full, the op eration or circulation of the liquid under thecontraction or expansion which is liable to occur during avoyage will beas follows: If the liquid in the tanks A A contracts, as is generallythe case in sailing from a warmer into a cooler climate, a portion ofthe liquid in the supplemental tanks (1 a will run down the pipes -b andsupply any diminution of volume, and the tanks AA will be kept full andunder continuous pressure so long as any liquid remains in the pipes band the tanks at a. If, on the other hand, the liquid in the tanks A Aexpands, by reason of an increase of temperature or other cause, it willascend the pipes 12 and the overflow be received and retained in theunfilled portion of the tanks act. The gas or vapor generated in thetanks A A will also ascend the pipes I), pass through the tanks at a,thence through thc'pipcs c, and be discharged above the deck through thepipe g. If at any time the overflow from expansion should be greaterthan can be contained in the tanks a a, itwill he forced up the pipes 0into the manifold c, and can be drawn from the discharge-cock fandconveyed to any receiver, or run overboard. The condition of the cargoas to its contraction or expansion can be determined by inspecting theindicators i. If observations of the indicators should show that theliquid was falling in one of the tanks a, but was rising or stationaryin others, or was falling more rapidlyin one than in others similarlyconnected, this would be an indication that the main tank or tanksconnected to IIS such supplemental tank were leaking and requiredimmediate attention. In such case, if the leak could not be stopped atonce, the connection of such leaky tank with its supplemental tankshould be cut off, preferably by means of a stopcock in its pipe b, andits contents pumped into empty tanks or overboard, as circumstances mayrequire. The

extent to which the supplemental tanks should be filled on leaving portwill depend largely upon the nature of the liquid composing the cargoand upon the climatic conditions to which it is to be subjected duringthe voyage.

If the nature of the liquid is such that its vol- 1 ume will be butslightly atlected by changes of temperature, the tanks at a. may, togive the best results, be filled nearly fullsay threefourths full. If,however, the liquid is liable to considerable variation in volume, andthe climatic conditions of the voyage can be determined with reasonablecertainty, the extent to which the tanks at a should be filled can alsobe determined. For instance, if it is known that the voyage will becontinuously from a cooler to a warmer temperature, it would bedesirable, for the best automatic operation of the combination, to fillthese tanks only about one-fourth full, which would leave threefourthsof their capaoity for overflow and onefourth of liquid from the start tosupply any deficiency in the main tanks which might arise from leaks oraccidents or from possible contraction. If the conditions should be suchthat it could be predicted that the voyage would be from a warmer to acooler tempera ture, it would be desirable to fill the tanks at a toabout three-fourths of their capacity on leaving port.

\ It is considered that the relative capacity of the main andsupplemental tanks, as shown in the drawings, is such that underordinary circumstances the proper quantity of liquid can be carried inthe tanks a a to supply any deficiency in the main tanks fromcontraction 5 or ordinary leakage, and at the same time leave sufficientroom in the tanks at a to receive any liquid which may be forced intothem from the main tanks by the expansion of the liquid therein withoutany loss of liquid from overflow on the one hand and without beingobliged to pump additional liquid into the supplemental tanks on theother hand to supply for contraction, thus automatically keeping themain tanks full and their contents under continuous pressure at alltimes during the voyage.

The tanks A A and a a are preferably arranged so that their connectedheads will face one of the hatchways,in order that there may be spacefor the passage of the various pipes through the hatchways to the tanksabove and to the deck, and also that the pipes and the heads of thetanks may be readily accessible.

In the arrangement of four tiers of tanks, as

- 6 5 shown in the drawings, there should be three hatches, j, andcorresponding hatchways, each of which will contain a system of pipes,connecting the main and supplemental tanks and the gas-discharge pipesrising above a deckhouse, substantially as shown in Fig. 1. In case anyof the tanks a a are connected with more than one of the main tanks, asrepresented on the right-hand side of Fig. 1, the unconnected tanks maybe filled or partly filled with liquid to meet any emergency of loss byaccident or excessive leakage of the contents of any of the main tanks,and in such case these tanks can be connected with the main tanks bymeans of flexible pipes, which can be readily attached to properfittings on the heads of the tanks at a. So if at any time the overflowfrom the main tanks is in excess of the capacity of the supplementaltanks with which they are connected, the proper connection may be madewith any of the empty or partly empty tanks at a, and the overflow bethus provided for.

It is readily observed that the main advantages of the present inventionas compared with that set forth in Letters Patent N 0. 326,844 consistnot only in greater economy and simplicity of the construction, butparticularly in the automatic operation of the combined parts to providea supply of liquid to fill any vacancy or tendency thereto bycontraction or leakage in the main tanks, to keep the contents of themain tanks under continuous pressure by means of such supply, and toprovide receptacles to receive and re tain the overflow from theexpansion of the contents of the main tanks in such way that suchoverflow can be used to add to the pressure upon the contents of themain tanks and to supply any subsequent deficiency therein. lhisconstruction, with its attendant automatic operation, saves the expenseof pumping the liquid from auxiliary into pressure tanks, and in thecase of small sailing vessels saves the expenses of an engineer and offuel, &c.

What is claimed as new is- 1. The combination, in the hull of a vessel,of a series of main storage-tanks and a corresponding series ofseparated supplemental tanks located abox e said main tanks andconnected thereto by independent pipes, whereby IlO the contents of eachmain tank are kept under continuous pressure, and diminution therein isautomatically supplied from the corresponding supplemental tank, and theoverflow from the main tank is received in the supplemental tank,substantially as described.

2. The combination, with a series of main storage-tanks arranged in thehullof a vessel, of a corresponding series of supplemental tanks locatedabove the main tanks, each supplemental tank having pipe-connection withits corresponding main tank, and a gas-discharge pipe from eachsupplemental tank, as set forth.

3. In the hull of a vessel, the combination of a series of independentstorage-tanks and a corresponding series of supplemental tanks eachhaving an indicator and a gas-escape,

and apipe-connection from each supplemental r0 tank to its correspondingmain tank, as set forth.

L. V. SONE. Witnesses:

ROBERT H. DUNCAN, tom. F. GAYLORD.

